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#1705176
Ed the Head
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How old is Archie 
Hello folks, I am new at this but i think we are doing a good job so far. I bought two Bearded Dragons in December 4 months ago and a Veiled Chameleon about a month ago.
They just never told us how old they are.
Can anyone tell me how old they think Archie is so i can take better care of this sweet fella?
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04/16/08 06:50am
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#1705192
Ed the Head
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Message To: Ed the Head In reference to Message Id: 1705176
How old is Archie
Here is Archies cage. I know, i know its a glass aquarium but its a screen on top and it helps with the humidity. I use a drip system and heavy misting for spray- He hasnt eaten any veg that i can see, only crickets, about 15.
I dont want to bother him too much so i only clean his cage out properly once a week. At least he doesnt eat as many crickets as the two bearded dragons cause its costing me a fortune. I am going to try to breed crickets but its winter now so i assume not a good time to start.
We LOVE ol’ Archie- he is so coool. Thanks for any info.
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04/16/08 07:23am
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#1705275
Julirs
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Message To: Ed the Head In reference to Message Id: 1705192
How old is Archie
Are you sure Archie is a boy? Does he have tarsal spurs on his back heels? It seems to be maybe around 5 months old. Screen caging is the only way to go with these guys as adults-the humidity can get too high in glass cages causing repiratory issues with as much misting as you have to do. If you go to my profile there is a link to my website and an excellent sheet on Veiled chameleon care.
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04/16/08 09:41am
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#1706014
Mjcullen
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Message To: Julirs In reference to Message Id: 1705275
How old is Archie
hi,
your cham looks like a girl, and i would agree with julirs about the age, 5-6 months,
and i would also agree about the glass, but alot here don’t,
he/she look cute , i remember mine like that.
cheers
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04/16/08 08:27pm
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#1706847
Boothy
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Message To: Mjcullen In reference to Message Id: 1706014
How old is Archie
again there’s nothing wrong with glass enclosures as long as they are made properly and have good air ventilation, some people here in Canada and Europe use glass because of our dry long winters so we use them to keep there humidity up or else some of us wouldn’t be able to take care of our chams properly, and I’m not arguing with anyone saying glass is better sometimes its not sometimes it is, just depends on where you live in this world, most ppl use all screen cages down in the south states because there temps and humidity are so close to the natural environment of chameleons they can keep them in all screen , all I’m saying is everyone has there own techniques they use that work well for them and theres nothing anyone of us can do about , so please stop bashing the glass
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04/17/08 04:37pm
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#1707798
Seiryu
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Message To: Boothy In reference to Message Id: 1706847
How old is Archie
Hey Ed, is that just one of those climbingvines in your enclosure with vines wrapped around it, or is it some type of tree?
Cant tell as it’s far away, thanks!.
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04/18/08 11:30am
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#1710952
Ed the Head
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Message To: Seiryu In reference to Message Id: 1707798
How old is Archie
Tks everyone, I think Archie is a HE but i’m not sure - i see spurs on the back of his feet but its not very pronounced because he is still small. I have been hearing a lot about the glass/screen debate- it never snows in my town and its inland and not humid at all HOWEVER the pet shop told me the Veiled is from Arabia and there is no humidity so a screen is better and then another pet shop told me the veileds that we get here in South Africa are sub-tropical from humid Madagascar- I am considering putting him in a screen cage in summer and the glass Exoterra with screen on top in winter.
Anyone else want to guess how old he is ?- does 5 months sound right?
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04/21/08 07:14am
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#1710953
Ed the Head
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Message To: Seiryu In reference to Message Id: 1707798
How old is Archie
I only use the fake plastic plants- i decided it would be the most hygienic- i bought the "vines" at the pet shop- it seems to work well-
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04/21/08 07:16am
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#1711170
Boothy
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Message To: Ed the Head In reference to Message Id: 1710952
How old is Archie
yes veiled chameleons live in Saudi Arabia and Yemen , they dont live in Madagascar at all only panther chameleons , parsons chameleon and i think some kind of dwarf chameleon also , and yes its dry in Saudi Arabia but they also have mountains that are very humid and have found veiled’s to be high as 3000 ft above sea level so they can be kept with a moisture level of about 50 to 70%, to much screen and you wont hold moisture not saying screens bad , i use it but iv always made sure two sides of my enclosures are wood or solid so moisture can be kept in the enclosure cause its good for shedding and aiding in eye cleaning , because chameleons do shed there eye caps so its good to have this moisture so they dont rub there eye to infection, sorry but the guy at the pet shop was wrong when he said they come from madagascar but as for age it all really depends on the amount of intake he was eating each day , some grow fast and some slow like runts ahhah there all different but if i had to guess id say 4-5 months old because the casque he has is prolly around 1/2 inch and th bars are starting to come in , i personally think you have a male because of the already high casque but a picture will better justify this so take a pic of his back feet and we will tell you
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04/21/08 12:24pm
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#1711300
Julirs
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Message To: Boothy In reference to Message Id: 1711170
How old is Archie
Boothy-have you ever noticed that your chameleons have EYE LIDS???
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04/21/08 02:46pm
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#1712692
Shiftylarry
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Message To: Julirs In reference to Message Id: 1711300
How old is Archie
Screen enclosures aren’t better. If you want more ventilation, why not just add a small fan?
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04/22/08 05:55pm
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#1712715
Julirs
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Message To: Shiftylarry In reference to Message Id: 1712692
How old is Archie
If you live In Florida where the humidity is high and so are the temps-screen cages are definitley better for most chameleons. Now if you live in Canada,there may be a better option.
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04/22/08 06:10pm
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#1712862
Shiftylarry
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Message To: Julirs In reference to Message Id: 1712715
How old is Archie
Even so, the humidity in your house is not the same as the humidity outside. Your A/C sucks much of the moisture out of the air, and then the heat lights in the enclosure evaporate what’s left. If these chams are kept outside, that’s a different story.
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04/22/08 08:40pm
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#1713081
Julirs
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Message To: Shiftylarry In reference to Message Id: 1712862
How old is Archie
Shifty-what kind of chams are you keeping? Everyone I know here uses screen cages-everyone but my pygmies are in all screen filled with live plants-the humidity stays perfect.
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04/23/08 12:44am
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#1713392
Jonas77
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Message To: Julirs In reference to Message Id: 1713081
How old is Archie
I believe a majority of the ~150 species of chameleons live in Madagascar.
I would say one cant tell the age of a chameleon like yours without info on how it lived. Ive had one year olds that size and 4 month olds too...
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04/23/08 11:43am
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#1713434
Boothy
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Message To: Jonas77 In reference to Message Id: 1713392
How old is Archie
YES Julirs they have eye lids , and i dont know where your going with this at all ??
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04/23/08 12:36pm
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#1713466
Julirs
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Message To: Boothy In reference to Message Id: 1713434
How old is Archie
No eye caps. :)
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04/23/08 01:28pm
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#1715187
Shiftylarry
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Message To: Julirs In reference to Message Id: 1713466
How old is Archie
Julirs: None at the moment. I keep monitors, spiny tail iguanas, blue tongue skinks, and white lipped pythons. I do work at an exotic animal store, and we have Jacksons, Veileds, and Fischers Chams in the shop. When I first started working there, the Chameleons were kept in wire mesh cages. I knew they needed good ventilation, but I also knew they needed high humidity. My black roughneck monitor and my white lipped python like their humidity at about 80%. Their enclosures are completely sealed apart from a few vents in the lower levels of the cage. If they were open, all of the water vapor would escape and the cages would be bone dry. So, I wondered what the humidity levels be in these Cham enclosures at work. I got out my humidity gauge and discovered that they were about 35%. I really wasn’t surprised. There was nothing to hold in the water vapor, and the hot lights evaporated whatever water was added after each misting. It’s simple physics. Since chameleons are delicate animals, I knew that these fluctuations couldn’t be good for them. So, I build them some new cages with vents in the bottom 3rd of the enclosure, and small fans near the vents. This way, the cages were sealed, and the water vapor stayed in, and there was good air flow.
You can make the argument that I am not a Chameleon keeper (at least not in my house), so everything I say should be discounted, but in the end it comes down to simple physics. And although I don’t keep chameleons, I have been seriously keeping reptiles for a long time. For experiment’s sake, I advise everyone with screened enclosures to measure their humidity levels with accurate gauges and tell me whether or not you find the same low levels I have found. Ultimately I think you’ll discover that the levels are either the same as in your house or lower because of the warm lights.
Cheers
-Chris
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04/24/08 07:07pm
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#1715674
Julirs
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Message To: Shiftylarry In reference to Message Id: 1715187
How old is Archie
The argument is solid-you have never kept chams. The one thing that bothers me is that the 3 chameleons that you mentioned all need very different temps and humidities. If you work in a sucessful pet store you are moving animals and you won’t have them long enough to watch the effects of bad keeping. The one thing I will say in your favor is that you are one up from the average pet store that has them in aquariums since you are providing ventilation. Since you mention accurate guages, are you measuring temps? Temps are huge in chameleon keeping and all species mentioned need access to a decent variant of temps. Nothing 12-20" tall accomplishes this. Are you prvoviding proper UVB, are you properly dusting feeders? Sustained 80% humidity will cause issues (URI). A well planted screen cage is a good thing, and even with my AC my humidity in house is around 50%.
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04/25/08 02:19am
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#1716786
Jawstheme
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Message To: Julirs In reference to Message Id: 1715674
How old is Archie
my chameleon cage is mesh with a wooden rock wall back, it’s in my reptile room and the humidity is at 50% without me even misting. i havnt got my cham yet.
also isnt glass gonna stress out an alredy stressed chameleon in the shop?
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04/26/08 10:01am
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